Red Sox

Magic number: 1

By David Lefort

October 26, 2005

In the spirit of nostalgia, we’re recapping last year’s historic World Series between the Red Sox and Cardinals. Today, Game 3 …

In his last appearance in a Red Sox uniform, Pedro Martinez pitched seven scoreless innings to help the Red Sox take a 3-0 lead in the World Series. Eventual MVP Manny Ramirez homered and drove in two.

Some memorable quotes from after Game 3:

Pedro Martinez: “It’s been a great ride. I hope everybody enjoyed it as much as I did. … I hope I get another chance to come back with this team, but I understand the business part of it. I hope everybody understands that I’m not the one who wanted to leave. If they don’t get me, it’s probably because they didn’t try hard enough. My heart is with Boston.”

Manny Ramirez: “This is big, but we learned our lesson against the Yankees. The Cardinals have such a great team. You’ve got to keep grinding out until you win the last game.”

Orlando Cabrera: “We’re playing hard, but we still have another game. It ain’t over till we win [tonight].”

Dan Shaughnessy: It looks as if the planets really are aligned for the Red Sox this time. A lunar eclipse is due to start less than an hour before the Sox and St. Louis Cardinals play the fourth game of the World Series tonight. If skies are clear, the moon over Busch Stadium will be blood red in the late innings. There has never been a full lunar eclipse in the middle of a World Series game. Red October, indeed.

Eric Wilbur: One win does the trick. Today, tomorrow, Saturday, or Sunday. One win. The Red Sox are up 3-0 in the World Series over the Cardinals. No matter how many times you say it, it doesn’t seem real. It doesn’t seem possible.

Oct. 26, 2004
Game 3: Red Sox 4, Cardinals 1